Improvement in wheelbarrows



J. LENNON.

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NPETERS. PHOfO-l-ITHOGRAFHER. WlSHlNGTON D C UNITED STATES PATENT EEICEf JOIIN LEQNON, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

IMPROVEMENT IN WH EELBARROWS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent N0. 206,955, daodAugnst11H79; application filed June 27, 1878.

To all whom 1' t may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN LENNON, of the city and county of San Francisco, in the State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Wheelbarrows; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to certain drawings accompanying this specification and forming apart of the same.

My invention relates to a wheelbarrow or hand-truck the frame of which is made of both wood and metal, the two substances being so combined as to render the frame exceedingly strong and light, and at the same time cheap in construction.

Referrin g to the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a bottom view. Fig. 2 is a transverse section.

The side bars A and their handles, and also the cross-bars U of the barrow or truck frame, I make by combining wood and metal in the following1 manner: I first make the side bars and their handles of U-shaped metal and bend them to the required shape, just as though I was going to make the side bars and handles entirely of metal. I then make awooden side bar, d, and handle for each side, which will be of the proper size to tit in the U-shaped metal bar and handle. These wooden side bars I bend to a shape corresponding to the shape of the metal side bars, and place a wooden bar inside of each U-shaped metal bar, so that it will form a iillin g for the metal bar. The handles of the metal bars I then bend tightly around the handles of the wooden bars, thus fastening the wood and metal parts together. The cross-bars C, which connect the side bars, I also make of wood and metal in the same manner, so that the entire wooden frame is bound with metal, or, in other words, the hollow metal frame is iilled with wood, so that all the parts of the frame are solid. The crossbars can be secured to the side bars by bolts and nuts, or by clips or bands, as desired.

l prefer to invert the U-shaped metal bars, so that the wood will be inside and underneath them, so that the metal forms a binding for the sides and top of the wooden bars; but they could be applied otherwise, if preferred.

With this arrangement I can use a very light quality of U-iron for the handles, so that the cost of construction will not be increased above that of the ordinary metallic wheelbarrows. The metal protects and strengthens the wood, and at the same time gives the barrow the appearance of being a metallic wheelbarrow.

The solid bars enable me to connect and fasten the parts ot1 the frame together more strongly, so that the barrow will withstand harder usage and last longer than the metallic frames heretofore used.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

A metal-bound wooden frame for wheelbarrows and handtrucks, consisting of U- shaped metal side bars A and cross-bars F iilled with wood, the side bars at their ends being bent around, as described, to form handles and around the wooden iilling, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal.

JOHN LENNON. [L. s] Witnesses D. B. LAWLER, W. F. CLARK. 

